BREAKING NEWS: IRAQ WAR ENDS—ALL TROOPS TO COME HOME BY YEAR’S END

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President also rolls out jobs plan for returning veterans


October 21, 2011 (Washington D.C.) – It’s going to be a merry holiday season for the families of 39,000 U.S. service men and women in Iraq.

 

"I can report that, as promised, the rest of our troops in Iraq will come home by the end of the year," President Barack Obama announced today. "After nearly nine years, America's war in Iraq will be over." The war has claimed 4,400 American lives, many more Iraqi lives, and cost over $700 billion since its inception nine years ago.

 

The United States will offer to help Iraq train and equip its forces tp assure a stable and secure nation.  Just as Iraqis have persevered through war, I’m confident that they can build a future worthy of their history as the cradle of civilization,” Obama said.

 

The end of war in Iraq reflects a larger transition in world affairs, the President observed. “The tide of war is receding,” he said. “The drawdown in Iraq allowed us to refocus our fight against al-Qaida and achieve major victories against its leadership, including Osama bin Laden.”

 

The U.S. is also reducing the number of troops deployed to Afghanistan. When Obama took office in January 2009, more than 180,000 U.S. service members were deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan. “By the end of this year, that number will be cut in half. And make no mistake: It will continue to go down,” he promised.

 

 

The President praised the courage of our troops,, adding, "After a decade of war the nation that we need to build and the nation that we will build is our own, an America that sees its economic strength restored just as we've restored our leadership around the globe."
 

Earlier this week, the President and First Lady Michelle Obama rolled out a program for companies to hire 25,000 veterans or military spouses, calling it a symbol of patriotism. “We ask you to fight, to sacrifice, to risk your lives for your country,” he told a crowd at Joint Base Langley-Eustis. “The last thing you should have to do is fight for a job when you come home.”
 

In addition, he has proposed a Returning Heroes tax credit of up to $5,000 for businesses that hire unemployed veterans who have been out of work for six months or more. The President is also pushing for a $450 billion jobs bill, which thus far has been blocked by House Republicans. 

 

U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta  praised American troops.  “I think it’s a testament to their strength and to their resilience that we are now able to bring this war to a responsible end,” he said. “Thanks to their service and thanks to their sacrifice, Iraq is ready to govern and defend itself, and to contribute to the security and stability of a … vital part of the world.”

 

The secretary said U.S. defense officials will now turn their “full attention” to pursuing a long-term strategic partnership with Iraq based on mutual interests and respect.

 

“Our goal will be to establish a normal relationship, similar to others in the region that focuses on meeting security and training needs for Iraq,” he said.

 

Iraq is a sovereign nation that must determine its own future, and “we will help them in every way to do that,” the secretary said, noting that the country has developed a “very good capability” in its own national defense.

 

“We’ve taken out of there, right now, about 100,000 troops,” he said, “And yet the level of violence has remained relatively low.” That, he added, reflects Iraqi forces’ increasing capability to respond to security threats within their borders.

 

Iraq’s recently announced plan to purchase 18 F-16 fighter jets from the United States will build that nation’s air capability, Panetta said. “We will work with them to try to ensure they have the capability and training … to protect their own air space,” he concluded. 

 


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